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This past week has had me out at shows three nights in a row! Needless to say, I’m pretty tired. I had the double header of Mrs. Henry at Pourhouse on Friday and Saturday followed by the totally awesome lineup at SPF 949 on Sunday. It was a pretty blissful weekend.

This week I’m heading to Dover for the Firefly Festival so you get an extra day as I’ll be on a plane home come Monday. I’m super excited because this is my first time at this festival and the lineup has so so much to offer. I don’t know how I’m going to deal with it. I’m curious how it will compare with Bottlerock, because that was an amazing time.

I’m bummed to be missing so much awesome stuff this week! Go enjoy it for me, yeah?

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One of my faves released a long-awaited album today. I’ve been listening all day, enjoying songs, a good mix of power and beauty, old and new, modern and primitive(?). I keep trying to pick a favorite song, but every time I think I’ve settled on one, the next song will come on and I’ll change my mind. Certainly a record I’d recommend digging into.

If you want a band to follow from the early stages, check out Arkivist. The recently relocated to LA trio already are developing a definitive style that is very much their own. Their music speaks both to the more intellectual-minded as well as to those appreciative of the more baser notions of rhythm and melody.

I’ve been to several shows in the past couple of weeks, but this one…this one holds a very special place in my heart. Guitar maestro, Zane Carney, with his backing band (composed, in part, of LMN Band Love Carney) took the audience through a musical journey, rocking and rolling through the best of Zane’s ever growing (and improving) catalog of songs. The journey climaxed with a rendition of “Helter Skelter” that was pretty much an out of body experience. Hopefully his new music will be released soon, but until then, you simply must take every opportunity to see Zane Carey live (I’d post a video, but it wouldn’t do the experience justice).

I’m making my way through the list of SXSW artists and Middle Kids were one to really catch my ear. This three-piece from Australia has an EP coming out Feb. 17th and will be at The Echo Feb. 25th. Mark your calendars!

~ Kristen

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I’ve told myself for some time now that once I finished up my PhD work, I could focus more on posting on this site. The amount of music I sift through on a weekly basis whether it be from live shows, press releases, in preparation of my weekly calendar, or just word of mouth suggestions is…well it can be a lot. I thought, to get back into the swing of things, I’d bring back my List to This column and share some of the sights and sounds that have grabbed my attention.

Love this band! So happy to see them back at it with a new EP (In the Middle) that came out towards the end of last year. They are hitting the road with July Talk and will be at Soda Bar in San Diego on January 28th and at Bootleg Theater in LA on the 31st. Catch them if you can!

The “Jets” are doing a residency at The Satellite this month. Their second night happened to be my first show of the year (shocking, I know). If I look past the theatrics (lights! smoke! dramatic curtain drop!), I feel like there is a compelling musical force that is sure to get attention from music aficionados everywhere.

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2015 was not the best of years, but it certainly had its moments…most of the good ones involved music. Here are a few of the songs that had an impact on my year.

I was going to say that Highly Suspect’sMister Asylum was the most underrated album of the year…until it was nominated for a Grammy!?!? I was gobsmacked in the best way imaginable as it is certainly my favorite rock release in 2015. Full of dramatic, heart-pounding rockers, more than a time or two I’ve pressed play on the album and turned the volume waaaaaay up, drowning out my racing thoughts and punching my fists in the air.

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2015 was not the best of years, but it certainly had its moments…most of the good ones involved music. Here are a few of the songs that had an impact on my year.

Walking on Cars were my band of SXSW 2015 and stuck with me for the rest of the year. They became one of my High Voltage features and one of my more successful recommendations. “Hand in Hand” was a song I used to lure one of my most passionate music friends into the Walking On Cars fold. I can’t wait for this band’s debut album to come out next year.

~ Kristen

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Max and the Moon from Chino Hills, Ca. are kicking off their first headlining tour in San Diego, gearing up for an EP release and are looking to take the world by storm. They play tomorrow at the House of Blues Voodoo Room and it’s definitely something you should check out. If you still need convincing, check out my chat with them and listen to their single Harps.

1. Tell us a little about who you are as a band.

– Max and the Moon is a band that loves looking forward to new things that will shape its career. We all take the opportunities we get as a band very seriously and always give it everything we got. But we also like to have fun and be creative while doing so. We’re always wanting to achieve more later down the road because we don’t like staying in one place and not growing continuously as writers and musicians. We like to think our new songs, Modern Love and Harps are a testament to that because we’ve developed our sound every chance we’ve gotten. So we’re excited for the future!

2. What can people expect from the live show?

– Well, we haven’t had a chance to play live since November of last year! So we are very excited to get back on stage, doing what we love to do. I think people can expect to see a lot of energy and connection with our fans. Also, we’re stoked to share our new songs live and see what everyone thinks of them.

3. What do you like about playing in San Diego?

– It’s always nice to be in front of such a welcoming group of people and every time we’ve played down here we’ve received awesome feedback from the fans. San Diego audiences are engaged and very respectful of the artist. That type of dedication to live entertainment pushes us to give everything we got. The town itself is beautiful and comforting. We think the people exude these same qualities.

4. Tell us about your upcoming EP MATM.

– We’ve worked very hard on the songs that are on the upcoming EP. We pulled ideas from the sounds that were on our The Way I See EP, a little bit of vocal influence from our writing with the Crazy EP, and also there is a lot of fresh grooves and moods the new songs give off. We tend to be most proud of anything new we’ve created and we can all personally say we care deeply about these brand new tunes.

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Although I have zero plans to attend Coachella, either online or in person, I’ve been really enjoying the posts from some friends who are out there experiencing the fun. I haven’t been to Coachella in a few years and part of me misses it, but the rest of me is happy to be home instead. In fact, today I went to a trampoline park for some cardio work. Sure I got sweaty, but it’s nothing to the sweat that Coachella brings. However, there will be massive sweating this week because The Silent Comedy is finally playing a hometown show and you know that’s going to be a sweaty dance party of awesome! Also, Saint Motel will be hanging down here between Coachella weekends and they are another dance party waiting to happen.We have some good stuff this week. Go out, see music.

Monday: St. Lucia @ Observatory North Park at 8pm

Tuesday: Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo @ Balboa Theatre at 7:30pm
AND: Father John Misty @ Observatory North Park at 8pm- SOLD OUT
AND: George Ezra @ Belly Up at 8pm- SOLD OUT

Wednesday: Lights, Saint Motel @ The Irenic at 7pm- SOLD OUT
AND: Jamestown Revival @ Belly Up at 8pm